Optical



A. PERRIN.

OPTICAL INSTRUMENT.

APPLICATION FILED JAN. 5, 1921.

mooma Patented 960.13, 1921.

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Specification of Letters Patent. Pafgnted Dec, 13;, 1921,

Application filed January 5, 1921. Serial No. 435,138.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, ARTHUR resident-of Brookline, in the county of Norfolk and State of Massachusetts, being a citizen of the United States, have invented an Improvement in Optical Instruments, of

which the following description, in connection with the accompanying drawing, is a specification, like reference characters on the drawing representing like parts.

This invention relates to an optical instrument in the nature of an opera glass, or field glass, and is embodied in an instrument of that kind, which the lenses or optical elements are mounted in spectacle frames, two pairs in tandem arrungernent, so that the instrument may be retained supported on the head of the user, leaving-the hands free.

7 The invention consists mainly in novel features of construction of the lens holding and supporting frames wit-ha view to compactness, so that the instrument may be closed and folded and contained in an ordinary spectacle or goggle case when not win use, and in features ofoptical construction, or arrangement which 18 such that the ordinary vision of the user is practically not interfered with while the instrument is in position before the eyes readyi'or instant use for telescopicvision.

Figure 1 is an elevation of the instrument as seenwhen looking toward the eyepiece with the objective and eyepiece elements closed together and with the bow at thc left hand folded down, while the bow at the right hand is'tu'rned up to the position for use, the bows at both sides being represented as broken away except for a short portion structurallyconsidered the instrument is.

composed of two main elements, each'resemb'ling an ordinary pair of spectaclesthe lenses and frames of wh ch are constructed PERRIN, a

tocoiiperate so es to constitute, optically con-'- sidered an opera glass, or binocular telescopic instrument, and for convenience in description, the said main components will be referred to as the front-and rear spectacles, although they are not separately suitable for use as such. r

'lhe rear spectacle irame is shown as compr1s1ng the rims 2, to contain the lenses, the

shoulders, 3, for connection with the bows,

and'the bridge 4:, to connect the lenses end to afford a support for the instrument on the. .j.

nose of the user, ell of which may be'of any 1 suitable or usual construction such es exhibited-in ordinary spectacles.

The shoulders 3, curved or o'fiset to provide for the, pivotal attachment st 5, of

the bows whichare specially constructed as followsz A shf'ort ortion 6, is constructed at one end for the hinge connection withthe shoulder 3, and is provided, or is 'rigidl connected with a guide 7,"at its outer en said portion 6, being curved or-oifset as best shown at the left handin Fig. l-so-asrto brin the guide 7', just above or-=belowthe level of thev shoulder 3, as appears most clearly at the right hand in Fig.1. connected with said guide 7, is theuneunportion of the how 8, which may be made to engage with. the sides'of the and over the ears otthc user in any suitable or usuel Rigidity way, it being shown at the left hand in Fig".-

2, as terminating in a loop or eye connected with an elastic band 9, to pass eroundthe back of vthe head. i

The bows ofthe rear spectacles thus cooperate with the lenses and with the head of the user in the usual manner, and they may be folded down over the lenses as shown in Fig. 3, the offset in the shoulders 3, accommodating such action.

In the front spectacle frame the lens holding rims 22, may be ofusual construction,

but the 24,-need be only a rigid connection between the runs, as it does not have to rest on the nose ofthe user.

The pivot shoulders 23, to which the bows 26, are hinged-extend from therims 22,

rearward a distance a little in excess of the thickness of there'ar lens frame, and are located below (or it might be above) the level of the shoulders 3, of the rear frame, so that when closed, or with the two frames; near together as shown in Figs. 1, and 3, said shoulders 23, extend past the edge of the rear frame, and the hinge joint 25, of the front The bows 26, of the front spectacles ex-v tend through the guides 7 and continue along at the sides of the main portions 8, of the rear spectacles bows, and at their ends, said bows 26 are provided with guides 27, through which the main portions 8, of the rear bows pass, the said and accommodating a sliding movement of the bows 26 relative to the bows 8, in which movement said bows are retained in aline ment, and the bows 26, constitute virtually extensions of the bows 8. I

Thus when the bows of both frames are unfolded, or turned from the position shown at the left hand in Fig. l, and in Fig. 3, to the position shown at the right hand in Fig. 1, and in Fig. 2, the front lens frame may be drawn forward from the rear frame while maintaining the substantially co-axial posi-' tion of the front and. rear lenses until they are the proper distance apart to cooperate as a binocular instrument of telescopic..- character.

The user merely has to apply the rear spectacles by slipping the bows 8, back over the cars and resting the bridge at, on the nose, s in. putting on an. ordinary pair of spectan " tacles, and the front sp ctacles will be supthe front spectacles may he slipped back nearly to the rear ones, thus bringing the pivotal axes 5, and 25, of the hinge 301nts of the bows of the front and rear spectacles in ali'iiement or approximately so, when the bows of both spectacles can be turned or c folded down on the rear spectacles, and the entire instrument 1s compact enough to be put in an ordinary case such as is commonly bility to frictional contact between them in view of the somewhat flexible character of the material of which spectacle frames are made. For the same reason extreme preci sion in the positioning of the'hinge joints is unnecess'ary although they should be very uides 7, and 27, providing for incomes nearly co-axial to-p'revent excessive strain on the frames in the pivotal movement of the bows. I v Q So far as the structural features thus far described are concerned, the lenses, optically considered, might be of any character in convex, such as commonly used to produce a magnified image .of a distant object seen,

through them.

The lenses 10, of the rear spectacles have at their middle portion a concave lens .12,

such as commonly used as-an eyepiece i'n conjunction with a convex objective toenable the apparently enlarged seen in erect position.

The lenses 100, in the front spectacles are object to be which objective has to be supported parallel with and at a moderate distance from The eyepiece proper 12, occupies only a small area. at the middle of each of the rear spectacle lenses 10, the surrounding area of which is suitable for ordinary or normal vision, and when the instrument is adapted for an individual user the rear lenses, except for the small area occupied by the eyepiece at the middle, may be made in conformity with his usual oculists prescription.

As herein shown the lenses 10, of the rear spectacles are bifocal, the lower middle portion 14:, being such as to correct, for near vision, or reading, while the remainder is such as to correct for distant vision.

Thus the user by merely turning the eyes downward can see through the portion 14, ,with customary corrected vision for reading the program, for example, if at a theatrical performance, or for writing notes on an athletic performance orspectaicle, while having the opera glass instrument in place for instant use merely by turning the eyes slightly in their sockets as one naturally does in looking up from a book to a distant.

object. Both hands are also free for holding book or program, manipulating pencil or typewriter, or what not. i

If one desires the full field oil distant vision'it is necessary, only to turn the eyes up a little with a slight bowing of the head and one can look through the portion 13, of the lenses 10, with the vision properly corrected thereby and not interfered with by the objectives 100, which are then below the line of sight, although instantly available for telescopic vision by a slight and practically instinctive movement of the eyes and head. i If the eyesight of the user needs no correction, or if the instrument is intended for general use by various different persons, the portion of the rear lenses 10, which surrounds the central eyepiece lens 12, may be madeplane, thus affording-the customary or ordmary, but uncorrected, vision for any user.

lVhile not deemed so desirable a construcscribed.

1. An optical instrument comprising frontand rear spectacle frames, containing objective and eyepiece lenses respectively, said frames each having bows hinged thereto, and the bows of the respective frames being connected by guides which accommodate a relative. sliding movement by which the objectives may be moved. toward and fro1n=the eyepieces while retained parallel and substantially coaxial therewith, the shoulders to which said bows are hinged having the pivotal axes of the bows of the respective frames substantially in line with one another when the front and rear frames are closed together. whereby the connected hows of both frames can be folded down parallel with the plane. of the lenses.

2. In an optical instrument, front and: rear spectacle frames containing objective and eyepiece lenses'respectively, said rear frame having bows pivotally connected therewith consisting of short hinge portions having guides at their outer ends and main bow portions extending therefrom, said guides and main bow portions being offset relative'to the hinged ends; and said front frame having bows hinged thereto in line with and extending through the offset guides and along at the side of the olfset main portion of the rear frame bows, said front frame bows constituting an adjustable prolongation of the rea' frame bows for supporting the objective lenses parallel with and at the desired distance from the eye piece lenses.

3. In an optical instrument, front and rear spectacle frames containing objective and eyepiece lenses respectively, said rear frame having bows pivotally connected therewith consisting of short hinge portions having offset guides and main bow portions at the outer ends thereof; and said front frame having pivot shoulders and bows hinged thereto, at the level of the guides of the rear frame 'bows, and the hinge joints of the front frame bows being adapted to be placed with their axes in alinement' with the axes of the rear frame bow hinges, said front frame bows extending through the guides and along at the sides ofthe main bow portions of the rear frame, and being provided at their ends with guides embracing the said rear frame main bow portions.

4. In an optical instrument, front and rear spectacle frames. comprising means for supporting said frames on the head of the user, the front frame containing objective lenses, and the rear frame containing lenses the middle portion of the area of each of which constitutes an eyepiece to cooperate with the corresponding obective and the surrounding portion of which is adapted for the customary vision of the user.

ARTHUR P-ERRIN. 

